Help Me Forget
by Lor352
Summary: A young Sin'dorei Farstrider tries to make sense of the chaos the world has been thrown into, dealing with untold horrors all too common of his time.
1. Of a Dawnglen

I slowly opened my heavy eyelids that were lethargic and unwilling over my glowing green eyes, awakening gradually to Sheri's gentle voice calling out my name.

"Dylandy? Dylandy, are you feeling well? Dylandy..."

An unintentional groan escaped my lips as I felt her hand rest gently on my thigh. Though her touch was so soft as it had always been, the fever that suddenly racked my body the previous evening wouldn't allow even the faintest disturbance on my skin to go without painful response.

"_Anar'alah belore_! You're awake at last. Oh Dylandy, you're even worse than yesterday. Please just relax, I'll return shortly."

As I became fully aware of my surroundings watching Sheri turn and begin heading downstairs to the lower part of the Falconwing Square Inn, I noticed my skin was ashen and felt dry. At least I could tell I had clearly bathed recently, as my deep brown hair held a sheen that it never did when I was out on rangings; but against the skin of my hands, it simply looked unnatural.

_It's been at least a week since I've come into contact with arcane power,_ I realized to myself slowly. The lack of magic consumption and the stress of... recent events... certainly was what permitted this ailment to take over my body in such a way.

Sheri returned almost as swiftly as she had taken her leave, the good barkeep of the Inn an old friend of my family's, and a rather maternal figure to me.

"Here you are, Dylandy. It's a couple of mana crystals I recently received from the sanctums. Please take what you need."

Guiltily, I tapped a small amount from the crystal she placed in my hand. With our sanctums malfunctioning lately, the gradually more frequent attacks by the Wretched that lurked about, and the increase in training for many of my brethren preparing for the pilgrimage, these crystals were harder and harder to come by. Even through my remorse, I couldn't stop myself from continuing to drain the crystal completely. Warmth enveloped my body, color began to heighten in my cheeks, and I could feel sweat beads slowly rolling down my temples. The relief was... amazing.

"Thank you, _Minn'da_. I feel very improved already."

"Well, that's certainly a good thing, but you are still very weak. I'll go have Quarelestra see if we can make up some food for you, and then I'll go gather some fresh bloodthistle to make tea."

_Addicts_, I thought to myself. _What have my people become? Am I really so weak from not having any magic? Why can't I be stronger... I have to be stronger..._

"...ish? Dylandy?"

"I'm sorry, what were you asking?"

"I asked if you would like a meal prepared of meat or fish, _Kim'fal_. Are you still unwell?"

"No, I'm fine. I'd enjoy a good portion of meat, if I may."

Sheri smiled her warm, familar smile at me before rising and departing again to begin setting things in motion. I was still rather young, and was certainly treated as such, especially by her. I would be 73 soon, still just a boy of the Dawnglen family, though I had witnessed envoys of the Orcs and Tauren peoples drop their jaws in disbelief and ignorance when our age was explained. I was one of the younger journeyman in the Farstriders of Silvermoon - only my sister, Lallena Dawnglen, was younger than me.

Ah, my Lallena, how I loved her dearly. Her hair remained a pure gold as she grew, and her body was strong and solid as she loved to train even more than myself. We grew up mostly away from the other Quel'dorei after our parents had passed, and our bond was stronger than all the magic of our kingdom. Ever the tomboy, she always outperformed me sparring as children, but still ran crying to me when she first saw death in the eyes of a young lynx outside of the town one day.

"Andy, Andy!" she called to me, tears streaming down her perfectly symmetrical, innocent face.

"What's wrong, Lena? Are you hurt?" I rarely saw my Lallena crying, and I immediately took her into my arms, concern wrought across my face in this memory I could see clearly.

"Andy... a baby lynx! It wandered toward the city... and... and!..."

"Calm down, my dear Lena. Tell me what ails you so!" I stroked her back in small circles as she buried her face in my chest.

"Oh, Andy... One of the city guardians... he killed the lynx! I watched him do it!" She stared up at me with her intense violet eyes, a rather rare set for our people, and unheard of in my family that possessed all blue eyes as far as we could trace. Anger and sadness existed in their most raw forms there in those eyes. I almost smiled, as all interaction with her made me feel a love that was unlike any other that one could possibly have.

"Lena, the guardians of our Silvermoon wouldn't simply kill the lynx for the sake of killing. Does that truly make any sense to you? Nothing dies without purpose, sweet _Dor'da_. Even our parents' deaths were for the sake of the safety of our kingdom."

"No! It was only a baby! They couldn't have killed him for any reason other than... than..." she drifted away slowly in thought.

"Come, Lena, we shall observe the situation like good rangers should, and see what we can see with unclouded eyes."

She nodded in agreement carefully, as though not wanting to commit to being open to changing her mind about the situation. Her stubbornness was so endearing, as is everything about her still. She took my significantly larger hand; though we were less than a decade apart in age, I had recently experienced the token _belore bal'a dash_, a period where young elves of our kingdom usually grow to their maximum height and structure that is maintained through the rest of adulthood.

In the end, after evaluating what had transpired that morning, the young lynx's mother had moved herself and her cubs very close to the city. A guardian patrolling the pathways outside of the gates had encountered the cub. It is known that lynxes do occasionally attack the young and weak traveling into Silvermoon when desperate for food, and so, when the cub approached, the guardian only acted on his best judgement at the time. Lallena seemed to understand, but was still angry for many suns to follow.

"Here you are, Dylandy. The tea is almost finished as well." Sheri placed a tray down on the small, ornate stand next to the bed, and pulled away the flowing curtains from the bedside. The tray was full of baked dragonhawk eggs, a large lynx steak, spiced bread, and even a piece of imported snapvine watermelon. I suddenly realized I was ravenous.

Sheri brought up the tea after another minute or so and poured a cup for me. I sipped from it eagerly, burning myself a bit in the process.

"Dylandy... are you well enough to discuss Lallena?"

I stopped drinking and set down my cup. I looked down to my bare chest, my thoughts coming back to me in full force with what had happened only a few weeks ago. I wasn't sure that I could keep my food down, and I could feel my brow furrowing involuntarily as I pondered whether or not I really _was_ capable of this discussion.


	2. Lallena

_**[In response to a PM received recently, some of the Sin'dorei vocabulary I use, is, in fact, made up, via use of the offical Thalassian primer, the official Darnassian primer, as well as bits from the Thalassian parser employed within World of Warcraft. A few of the phrases are actual translations from lore. Please enjoy this next chapter.]**_

"LOOK OUT, DAWNGLEN!"

Lallena fell to the ground, as spry and softly as a cat on the hunt. A dozen arrows zoomed over her head, and she could hear the soft clanging of metal knives flying at a brother of her ranging band nearby. _Why do the trolls have to give us trouble in a time like this_? _Damn them_, she thought as she moved quickly through the grass to hide behind a lean-to.

Her people were born with a natural grace and agility; perhaps not as swift as many of the Kaldorei people, which the elders said they were descended from, but Lallena wouldn't believe such a tale until she saw one of those things in action herself. Lallena had an ability to move almost completely unseen even in the thick of a battle, with a quickness only matched by the fully grown lynxes of the area.

She had joined the Farstriders with her brother only a few years prior, in her 40s, as a ranger who, like all Farstriders, vowed to destroy evil and protect Quel'Thalas. Rumors held that she was one of the youngest rangers to join since Alleria Windrunner, and held as much or maybe more potential.

Though certainly skilled with the bow, she had also taken to the sword quite fondly through her training as a child. A much more frequent visitor of Silvermoon - unbeknownst to her brother - than most of the Farstriders, she met and trained under the elf Zelanis, a former member of the Farstriders who held more skill with the blade than many of the rangers combined.

_A rogue_, she was called, by Zelanis and others who knew of her extra training. _Perhaps I am rogue_, she thought, _but my strength will be used to protect my kingdom and my brother. I feel fulfilled with hilts in my hands._

She sighed and closed her eyes a moment, the once engaging violet pupils now imbued with a sickly green; the corruption in her eyes didn't compare to many others of Silvermoon, however.

With a determined breath, she began to sprint back toward the edge of the trail, toward safety. The call to retreat had been given by her band leader, and it was protocol to regroup at a predesignated location to recover and report. She stayed low and silent, at one point coming within mere feet of a disgusting Shadowpine, tempted to assassinate it where it stood. Shaking the thought, she continued onward until reaching the end of the trail, the Farstrider Enclave visible in the distance.

"Dawnglen, it is good to see you." Oninath, the leader of their band, nodded in Lallena's direction. "Where is Alastra?" He looked among his counted party, and Alastra was nowhere to be seen.

"Alastra has fallen. I was near her, and she strayed too close to the open while in combat with one of the creatures. It steered her right into..." Vynna trailed off and hung her head as she reflected upon the event. "_Belore ador_, sister..."

Lallena was infused with rage. This was just too much: The shattering of her home and the Sunwell, two things she grew up thinking they would be forever constant, threw their kingdom into chaos. The Amani and Shadowpine trolls encroaching on their damaged lands, knowing full well the weakened state the newly named_ Sin'dorei _were in, caused many to fall into such pessimism that they lost their focus and fell into the numbers of the Wretched. Now, Alastra, a young novice ranger that was only exceeded in intimacy with Lallena by Lallena's own brother, was gone. Action called.

With a lightning-fast pivot, she whirled around on her feet and began to march back to the troll encampments.

"Lallena!" Oninath called out. "You will not return there! We must report to Captain Helios and regroup!"

"_Xaxa'bash'a_!" Lallena yelled out, a highly disrespectful term to utilize. "Alastra is gone and I shall not have it! I am strong, you have told me this yourself, Oninath! I will kill them all!"

Before Oninath could respond, Lallena kicked up a small cloud of dust and disappeared into the permeating darkness that seemed to exist changelessly in the southern part of their lands since the destruction of the Sunwell.

I fidgeted with the remains of the dragonhawk egg on my plate, still chewing on Sheri's question rather than my food. I could feel her watching my every movement, her wise eyes trying to decipher my thoughts through my body language.

"_Kim'fal_, you know that it is not my wish to see you hurt so, but I love our Lallena as much as I love you. I need to know what happened, so that I may help you, and her if I can."

She stood and wrapped her arms around my head with the side of my face pressing into her chest. The ardor and affection of her embrace was so inviting; only my sister held me with such zeal, and no matter how much I willed it, she didn't appear in the doorway. A set of fingers deliberately weaved their way through my long hair, and I felt myself relax slightly.

"I miss her, _Minn'da_. I need her more than I need air or nourishment. I don't know what I'd do if she..."

I felt my eyes watering, and a tear worked its way outside of my eye and gradually down my cheek. Sheri pulled away to observe me again, and wiped the tear away tenderly with her thumb. She leaned down and took my lips upon hers, her hands cupping my face with their perpetually delicate touch.

"My poor dear... Do not speak of such things. You know how strong Lallena is; I am sure that she will find her way."

"She... she didn't return from the last ranging, _Minn'da_." The words fell from my mouth nonchalantly, as if they weren't even my own. "She was assisting at the Farstrider Enclave of the Ghostlands. Her ranging party informed me that she took off on her own after learning that Alastra fell..."

"Alastra fell! _Anar'alah_... no... oh my..." Sheri knew Alastra well, as the three of us had spent much time together growing into adults of the Farstriders.

I could feel my fists tightening. "Damn that Zelanis! I know she's been training under him lately, but she doesn't know that I'm aware. I don't trust one who consorts with those Forsaken and the Orcs the way that he does! He must've filled her head with..."

"You would point fingers at your own_ Sin'dorei _brethren in such a time, dear Dylandy?" An elf adorned with plate as red as blood stood in the doorway, replacing my hopeful visions of Lallena with his bulky image.

_Therassan_. A Blood Knight, a self-righteous leech of Silvermoon. Ever an annoyance, he had pursued my Lallena for years; regardless, both us of could barely stand his presence.

"Worry not, my brother-to-be. I shall recover our dear Lallena, and succeed where you have done nothing!"

Those words cut me deeper than that moron would ever know. In his attempt to be smug, he brought back the feeling that had me balancing on the very edge of despair itself. _I've done nothing_, I repeated in my head. _I've done nothing, while Lallena is out there, maybe captured, maybe dead..._

"That's enough, Therassan. You have been present in the area long enough to know that Dylandy has been on many important rangings lately to protect our city from the Scourge monsters!" Sheri could feel the sudden deadness that washed over my body.

"Well, as Lallena is the woman that I love, I would forsake my job to see to her safety! At least we know who truly loves her then, eh? I shall depart presently. Good day, Dylandy."

As Therassan left, I felt even my anger leave with him. _He was absolutely right... I love my Lallena. My Lallena is the most important thing in the world_.

"Don't listen to that boy." Sheri tried to comfort me, but she couldn't understand my pain.

Unmistakably, this was the worst hardship I had endured over my years. Yes, the Prince destroying our Sunwell to save us from corruption, the undead raised across our kingdom, ravaging our people and destroying our lands, the runestones failing gradually and allowing the trolls to encroach upon us, these things were indeed terrible. I knew that I could weather all of this and more, as long as Lallena was by my side. I did not know how I could possible fare without her.

With these thoughts racing around in my mind, I felt my body give way to gravity and begin to fall back onto the bed. My eyes closed, and as Sheri called out to me, I could feel my tired self drift to a relaxing place of nothingness.


End file.
